"Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold the new has come."   2 Corinthians 5:17

Greetings to you in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ!

This web site is dedicated to being a resource for those individuals who seek to learn more about the Catholic faith.  In doing so, this site will focus not only on what Catholicism teaches, but also what it does not teach.  It will attempt to clear up many of the misperceptions about the Catholic Church. 

While it is true that there are many doctrinal beliefs that are distinctively Catholic, there are likewise many other beliefs within Catholicism that are held in common with nearly all Christian faiths: that God is a Trinity, that Christ is the Incarnate Son of God who took away the sin of the world through His Atonement on the Cross, and that Christ will come again in Glory to judge the living and the dead.  Wherever there are common beliefs among all Christians, these will serve, in varying degrees, to bridge the gap between Catholicism and other Christian walks of faith. 

It is important to be aware of where these common touchstones among all Christians fall into the bigger picture.  That being said, we must likewise make note of differences and distinctions wherever they occur since to press forward with a mistaken notion of what others believe is to give one a false sense of ecumenism that actually does more harm than good.  While it is of paramount importance to strive for unity and objective Truth, this goal cannot be realized by denying ourselves while dialoging with others.

These differences and distinctions between various Christians are real and some are quite significant.  It isn’t until we honestly dialog about which beliefs are commonly held and which are not that we can begin to bridge the gap to become that which Christ enjoined for us to be:

"I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. The glory which thou hast given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,  I in them and thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me.”   John 17:20-23  

The above artwork is entitled "Christ Pantocrator" (artist unknown) and is one of the oldest surviving icons of Christ.  It is dated from the early part of the sixth century and is painted with colored beeswax applied with a spatula on a wooden panel.  Today it resides at St. Catherine's Monastery at Mount Sinai, Egypt.  

This particular icon has many noteworthy features.  The Greek word "Pantocrator" means "ruler of all."  Christ is robed in a royal purple tunic.  He is shown holding the four Gospel Books (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) in His left arm.  His right hand is posed in such a way to symbolize the Trinity (note the thumb touching the ring and pinky fingers - forming a group of three fingers); likewise note the index and middle fingers grouped together, thus denoting  the dual natures of Christ: fully human and fully divine.  Notice the asymmetrical face which also sybolizes the dual natures of Christ.  The right half of His face is animated with a raised eyebrow - thus symbolizing His human nature.  The left half of His face has a straight eyebrow and the look of a serene and impartial judge - thus symbolizing His divinity.

There are numerous other symbolic aspects of this famous icon and it is the source and inspiration of many books and articles.  It is widely held that the artist based the image of Christ's face on the "Myron" - a lost image of Christ's face on a cloth.  Many believe that the "Myron" is, in fact, the Shroud of Turin (see detail at the top of this page).  For information on the Shroud of Turin please click here.

If you object to the Catholic use of images, or are curious as to why Catholics place so much emphasis on images such as the above icon (as well as our use of statues and other forms of Sacred artwork), please read my essay on this topic.  The essay can be found by clicking here.  Evangelicals often claim that Catholics participate in idolatry due to Catholicism's devotional use of Sacred Art.  The truth is that Catholics do not practice idolatry and my article will explain why our use of art is not the idolatrous act that it may appear to be to Evangelical eyes.

Bridge To Catholicism

Keywords: Catholic, Catholicism, Religion, Religious, Protestant, Protestantism, Evangelical, Evangelicalism, Apologetics, Catechesis, Ecumenism, Docrine, Dogma, Christian, Christianity, Bible, Jesus, Christ, God, Trinity, Sacraments, Salvation, Spirit, Holy, Church, Grace.

Site description: Bridge To Catholicism seeks to explain the Catholic religion and the Catholic Church to Protestants and Evangelicals in an effort to clarify the doctrines and dogmas of Catholicism.  Evangelicals and Protestants will, hopefully, be able to learn that the Catholic faith is not mere Christianity, but rather is the fullest expression of the Christian ideal.